Staying alive where we live
Every living thing needs air, water, food and a safe place to live. The place where it lives is its habitat. Sometimes the habitat gives it problems: it is too hot, too cold, too dry, or there is too little food or shelter. Then it is harder to survive, which means to stay alive. Living things cope in different ways. A lizard rests in the shade at noon. A tree drops its leaves in a dry spell. People cope too: in a hot summer in Aswan we wear light cotton clothes, drink water and stay in the shade, and on a cold winter night we wear a coat. In this unit we will follow one story: bats. Bats are useful, shy animals that sleep upside down by day and hunt insects at night.
| Problem | How living things cope |
|---|---|
| Too hot | rest in the shade or a burrow; drink water |
| Too cold | thick fur, warm clothes, a warm den |
| Little water | travel to find water; save water |
| Little food or shelter | search farther; use a cave, a burrow or a nest |
Problem and answer. With a grown-up, choose three living things you can see near home: a street cat, a palm tree, a pigeon, a plant on the balcony. Copy the table in your notebook: Living thing, Problem, How it copes. Fill each row. Example: pigeon, hot noon, rests on a shady ledge.